EVAP hosts country's 1st EV eco-run

MANILA: The Electric Vehicles Association of the Philippines (EVAP), together with the Department of Energy (DOE), EV car manufacturers, and partners, hosted the first Electric Vehicle Eco- Run 2021 last Saturday, November 6.

The DOE office in Taguig served as the starting point for 20 participants who chose between the northern and southern legs for the eco-run. These participants came from different walks of life —EV users, car manufacturers, and even the DOE director himself.

The participants arrived with their EVs as early as 8 a.m. Each group was provided with a passport, which they had to present at each EV charging point to record their arrival time.

EVAP Chairman Emeritus and EVOS President Ferdi Raquelsantos explained the mechanics of the Eco Run, “For those who don’t know the mechanics of what we did for the eco-run, we actually made a measurement of the distance of the total kilometers from the registration, and then we did a simulation of this last week for the time. That is why we specified an average speed, like for the north loop, the average speed was 40kph and you were supposed to finish it in 30 mins. For the south loop, the average speed is only 15kph, then it will take you one hour and 15 minutes to complete. The whole loop takes 45 minutes and the average speed is 30kph.”

The first stop on the north leg was Unioil EDSA Guadalupe, where a fast-charging bay for EVs is available. The next stop was in the Jaguar Land Rover showroom in EDSA Greenhills, San Juan, where the participants were welcomed by the Delta team. Delta, a leading manufacturer for UPS systems, is one of EVAP’s proud partners.

The third stop on the North leg was the BYD showroom located along Buendia Avenue and Dian Street. BYD is a car manufacturer that offers its own EV lineup. The last stop is the Nissan Otis. Nissan also has its own EV series.

The pitstop was at Ford Autohub in Bonifacio Global City, where all participants submitted their passports so that the time taken to finish the routes could be checked. Pilipinas Autogroup Inc., the Philippine distributor of Dong Feng EVs, is also a member of EVAP.

In a statement, DOE Director Patrick Aquino said, “We are hopeful, in the part of the government; we are very much committed to see more electric vehicles driving in this country. We are very appreciative of the efforts done by EVAP and its partners, for bringing the technology here. Even without the full government support. Hopefully, you can also be present in echoing our message to your congressmen, representatives and senators, that we can finish the bi-cameral conference towards the end of the month so the bill will be passed and approved into law. We can expect that each sector, end-user will get benefits and incentives to help accelerate this.”

Meanwhile, EVAP President Edmund Araga stated, “As part of our advocacy in accelerating the switch to EV and its charging infrastructure, we need to act now by showcasing existing EV cars that we have in the market and its access in charging these units.”

Raquelsantos presented the awards for the Eco Run 2021 winners. Alexis Alberi Prado Torio emerged as the runner-up for north loop, while Aquino was hailed as the winner. For the south loop, Joel Macatula finished as the runner-up, while Mark Tieng of BYD completed the run as the winner. For both loops, Tom Tolibas of Nissan became the runner-up, while Christian Manuel David was the winner.

The event was also sponsored by Wallbox, a brand the produces EV chargers.

Currently, there is a total of 110 charging stations in the Philippines. With the support of DOE, the goal of promoting, legalizing, and supporting the ecology of EV owners in the country is now one step closer to reality.

With the ever-increasing cost of fuel, it is clear that switching to hybrid or pure electric vehicles will be a wise choice in the future. The use of EV, which is both silent and energy-efficient, helps cut down the use of fossil fuels, emit less carbon dioxide, and reduce noise pollution. It is also practical to maintain an electric vehicle because it has fewer moving parts (just a motor and battery compartment) than a traditional car with a gas or diesel engine.

Photos from Electric Vehicles Association of the Philippines

Also read: 9th PH Electric Vehicle Summit to champion quick electro-mobility adoption